The Humane Society of Silicon Valley had gone to the dogs before president Christine Benninger took hold of the leash in 1993. By nearly every metric - profits earned, animals saved, customers satisfied - she outlines how proven business practices transformed the HSSV into best of breed.

Identity theft is a concern not only for entrepreneurs, but also for their employees and customers. A security breach that releases social security numbers or other sensitive information may require you to alert the victims and the authorities ASAP. Bonus: several helpful links to other guidance and information.

The devils plaguing entrepreneurs who outsource are indeed in the details. Getting it right involves sidestepping five common pitfalls and following five commonsense practices. Basic to a successful outsourcing relationship: Does everyone agree on what the deliverables will be?

Just as with hiring internal managers and staff, using external support requires careful planning and selection. Before you select a consultant or contractor, determine your budget, scope of work, timeline, measures for success, and other resources available to support the people who will do the work. Use this worksheet to help you think through important issues and to guide you in the selection process.

Thanks to the Web, copyright laws are now front and center for entrepreneurs. Are the Fortune magazine quotes you use in your marketing e-newsletter protected? (Possibly) Are e-mails protected? (Yes and No) This article, while not legal advice, is an excellent, readable guide to today's changing copyright laws.

Not all Web hosts are the same--far from it. Matching your host to your company is vital, and you have a lot of choices. Price, size, service offerings, type (there are four, at least), bandwidth, back-up processes, redundancy, and reputation are just a few. This article is part of a series on Web services.

The Six Sigma manufacturing process drives production to near-perfect levels, seeking less than 3.4 defects per million output units. Here, the basic purpose and process of the Six Sigma methodology, and its connection to "lean" manufacturing, are clearly explained for entrepreneurs. The article also provides tips on getting started and guidelines to successful implementation.

As Buck Knives, Inc., celebrated a century in business, it also faced a cash crunch that was putting it out of business. CEO CJ Buck shares how his team took dramatic action (including moving the company from Southern California to northern Idaho) to fend off high-quality global competitors and to turn the historic and highly regarded company around with its own version of the Toyota Production System (TPS).

After leaping into "Lean," Southern Vinyl Manufacturing gained efficiencies in nearly every area of its operations. Specifically, entrepreneur Rod Matthews explains the challenges and rewards of involving employees in finding and eliminating waste using the "Five Why" process. As a result of "getting lean," the company resolves manufacturing problems by digging deeply to identify root causes instead of just treating symptoms.

A network of U.S. cities facilitating a weekly entrepreneur education program. Go to 1 Million Cups >

Whether you are starting or growing a company, FastTrac will help you live your dream at each stage.Get started with FastTrac >

Email Newsletters

Want to be up-to-date with the latest news and updates from Entrepreneurship.org? To subscribe, just give us your email address below; you'll choose which e-newsletters you'd like to receive on the next screen.

Email Newsletter Sign-up Form

Enter your Email Address:Submit

Socialize With Us

Choose your favorite social media channels to keep up with the latest activity on Entrepreneurship.org.